Time to Sleep
by Lozzimal
Summary: With Rachel gone to New Jersey and Steve in jail, Danny hasn't been able to get any real sleep for days. When Steve is free and Five-0 back in business, Danny finally crashes. Rated for a couple of bad words


Time to sleep by Lozza

From a prompt on Hawaii 050 Hurt/Comfort on LJ

With Rachel gone to Jersey and Steve in jail, Danny hasn't been able to get any real sleep for days. When Steve is free and Five-0 back in business, Danny finally crashes.

*****************************

Danny groaned as his alarm squealed in his ear and found enough energy from somewhere to slap it into submission. Another day, another night of no sleep, tossing and turning and worrying in turns about Steve, Grace, Chin and Kono, and himself too if he had to admit. Steve at least, was out of prison, he'd escaped as was his wont, and when he said to Danny with that stupid smirk "I've broken out of more secure and heavily guarded places than that, Danno" he'd not known whether to kiss him or punch him.

And he hoped, when yesterday they'd finally, FINALLY managed to get all charges dropped from the Commander Steve might take a few days off, or at least let his team. But no, the Lieutenant Governor had wanted them to restart immediately, and Steve had jumped in with both feet, pulling Danny along with him. Again.

So that was how he found himself dragging his sorry butt out of his sorry bed in his sorry apartment to his pathetic shower. To get ready for another crazy ass day in his sorry, stupid fucked up life.

By the time he had showered and dressed Danny felt a little better, but not enough to eat with his coffee. That was all he seemed to exist on now, coffee, antacids and the occasional biscuit and piece of fruit the BAMF twins forced on him. But he had lost his appetite when he had lost his daughter along with any inclination to worry about it.

He locked up, climbed into his car and made the short drive to HQ and was not surprised to see Steve's truck parked in its normal spot when he got there. He sighed, climbed out and walked into the building, but took one look at the stairs and made for the elevator. He was so tired he couldn't even think, and only pulled himself out of it when the elevator doors pinged his floor, making him start. He sighed, pleased that he was actually alone in the car so no-one had seen him, walked in to the reinstated 5-0 offices and headed straight to the coffee machine, which was, miracle of miracles, still where he had left it.

Steve, waiting for him to arrive, bounced out of his office and over to him, all buzzing energy that seemed to drain virtually all of Danny's spare reserves in one go. "Morning Danno." he greeted him. "You look like you've been run over by an aircraft carrier."

Danny grunted at him and poured some coffee, noting how much his hands shook around his mug. So did Steve, who surrounded his hand on the mug with one of his own and held it for him so he didn't spill any of the hot liquid. "Are you okay?" Steve asked him, concerned all of a sudden.

"Tired." Danny replied and tried to take a sip of the precious brew in his hand.

Steve stopped him though, and responded to the glare he was given with a steady gaze. The Commander was the first to admit he hadn't been with his partner enough since he'd been Sarined, he had spent a lot of time in work, with Jenna, trying to pinpoint Wo Fat. He had thought his partner was okay, especially with Rachel back on the scene, and he hadn't kept such a weather eye on him. And then this crap had happened. Danny had been physically ripped away from him by their enemies and the pain of that had actually been more than the pain Steve had felt from Jameson's betrayal. Now though, Danny had saved his ass, again, and it was time Steve did the same for him.

"When did you last sleep, Danno?" he asked him firmly, and pulled the mug away from him without too much trouble. "Properly. The whole night through."

Danny shrugged, just watching where he put the mug down so he could reach for it again. "I dunno." he answered, and tried to reach for the mug around him. He glared up at his partner when Steve stopped him again. "I need coffee!" he grumbled loudly. "Gimme!"

"You need sleep." Steve corrected him firmly. "And food. You've lost weight, Danny. Have you eaten this morning?"

Danny glared balefully at him for a moment before he realised he still had some cans of energy drink in his office. He turned with the aim of going there to get a couple, but his brain seemed to stutter to a halt, finally giving up on him. He stumbled over his own feet and reached out with an arm for anything to support himself on, and ended up hanging on Steve's arm. He took a breath to steady himself, tried to stop his knees from shaking too much and took a step forward. But his foot didn't reach the floor again and he stepped instead into darkness.

****************************

Steve swore when he noticed his partner wasn't going to make the step and he grabbed him quickly before he could kiss the floor. Danny was completely lax in Steve's arms, unconscious, and his partner manhandled him onto his back and then onto the floor. He quickly checked his pulse; far too fast; and his breathing; gasping and irregular. "Shit, Danny." he said quietly and pulled out his newly returned cell phone. "Please don't do this to me."

****************************

Chin wasn't particularly surprised to see an ambulance outside HQ when he arrived – dismayed, yes, surprised? Not really. Even less so when he saw Steve, jogging beside a gurney pushed by paramedics, holding up an IV bag, tube trailing down to the person supine on the surface. And even though he couldn't see the face of the person on the gurney, covered by an oxygen mask, he knew it was Danny from the scared expression on Steve's face.

He ran over when the paramedics were lifting the gurney into their van and took hold of one of Steve's arms in a tight grip. "Steve? What happened?"

The Commander looked a little relieved when he saw who it was. "Danny collapsed." he said quickly. "He's not breathing well, and his heart…" He couldn't continue, the paramedics were already setting up and ready to go.

"If you're coming Commander, we've got to go now." the one in the back called over to him.

Steve nodded and climbed in the back, getting settled out of the way. "Chin…?" he questioned, but his friend cut him off.

"I'll meet you there." the Lieutenant told him, and firmly shut the doors. He thumped on them to show the driver it was safe to go and watched as the ambulance was driven away, lights and sirens blazing.

******************************

Steve hated hospitals, hated them with passion. Especially when, even though he was Danny's next of kin, he wasn't allowed to stay with him in the ER. So he paced the waiting area, glaring at the nurse who was trying to stop him, sneering at the security guard she'd called when he had started to make a fuss. He had only calmed down when Chin had arrived, siccing Kono onto him. But finally after what had seemed like hours, a harried looking doctor walked out into the waiting area and looked around. He walked over to the trio and looked down at them with a tired smile. "You must be Steve McGarrett." he said to the man in question when Steve looked up at him from his seated position, elbows still on his knees from where he had held his head. "Danny said to look for the security guard and two others holding a tall guy down."

Steve nodded and stood. "He's awake then." he replied. "What happened? Where is he? When can I see him? I need to see him now."

"I'm Doctor Maxfield." the man introduced himself, his smile a little wider. "He'd said you'd say that." he answered him. "Come with me, I'll take you."

They didn't need telling twice, and Steve followed quickly, the others following him. "What happened?" he asked Maxfield again.

"Basically he's exhausted." Maxfield told him as he led them to an elevator. "He's dehydrated, malnourished, anaemic and at the end of his rope. He needs to sleep for about a week." He looked Steve up and down with judging eyes. "Same as you, Commander." he commented. "You should probably share a bed, make sure you both sleep."

"We'll make sure of it, Doctor." Chin assured him seriously.

**************************

Danny looked, well, like crap; Steve decided when he stood over him. He looked grey apart from the circles, black like bruises, under his eyes, face gaunt and pinched and frown lines etched into his forehead. His eyes were closed, he was covered in a couple of blankets, and one bony hand clutched the top one over his chest. There was an IV needle in the back of that hand, linked to a couple of bags on the stand next to his bed, and a pulse ox meter covering the tip of his index finger. Apart from that he didn't have any other machinery on, in or around him, which was a distinct bonus. Steve had thought he was asleep, but when Danny heard their approach he opened his eyes and blinked up at them owlishly.

Steve smiled down at him and gently brushed his floppy blond hair out of his eyes. "D." he said fondly to him. "You scared me."

Danny shrugged and gifted him with a small smile in return. "You wouldn't let me drink coffee." he replied, which made Chin grin, Kono laugh and Steve roll his eyes heavenward.

"You won't let me put a bazooka in the car." he countered.

Danny's heartbeat almost doubled in speed on the heart monitor behind him as he glared at his partner, making the doctor frown in sudden worry. "My car!" Danny snapped at him and tried to poke him with the pulse ox meter. "Not _the__car_! _**My**_car!"

"Danny! Calm down!" Maxfield said loudly and loomed over him. "He was joking. Just breathe."

Steve smirked a little, so relieved Danny was going to be okay if his outburst had anything to do with it, and shook his head. "No, I really wasn't." he argued and smiled full on at his partner's death glare.

"Not helping." Doctor Maxfield snapped in reply. "I'm going to sedate both of you if you don't calm down, Danny." he threatened, glaring at the pair of them. "What do you both do? Spend the hours you should be sleeping coming up with ways to torment each other?"

Danny, his heart rate slowing at Steve's continued goofy smile, nodded. "Pretty much." he agreed. "Although I come up with insults, McGarrett here comes up with more and more impressive ways to maim me."

Steve finally laughed and caught hold of his friend's flailing hand in both of his. "Only in the hope that something might finally shut you up."

The doctor was just about to call for a nurse and two syringes of sedative, one each, at that but Kono gently pulled him away, shaking her head. "This is usual for them, brah." she explained as they both watched the pair.

Danny was smiling up at his partner, amusement that made his eyes twinkle, and something they'd not seen in over a week. "Not gonna happen, Steven." he retorted fondly. "I'm a Jersey Williams, I can talk the hind legs off a whole herd of donkeys." He overtly looked over the edge of his bed to see Steve's long legs. "I need to keep going though, you've still got yours."

The Commander took that in his stride: "Donkey" was probably one of the least offensive things Danno had called him in their acquaintance. Instead he leant over him and grinned a little wider, if possible. "If I promise to get you some malasadas tomorrow, will it keep you quiet?" he suggested. "Or I could kiss you. Will that work?"

"Or you could get some sleep too." Danny suggested himself, looking his friend up and down critically. "You look exhausted, you were stabbed a couple of days ago, I've not forgotten that. And if you stay here, where I can see you're not in trouble, then I can sleep properly."

Steve thought about it for a moment, and then nodded. "Okay." he agreed easily. He was tired too, and he knew he would feel better about this whole situation if he were here with his partner. He had gotten into a hell of a lot of trouble when Danny hadn't been with him, and he was also not willing to let him stay here on his own. The detective had, after all, spent the last week unravelling a multiple murderer's best laid plans, and he was unprotected here if Steve left him. And he eyed the other, empty, bed in the room with some envy.

Maxfield noticed and nodded with some relief. "Commander, use that bed." he ordered. "Daniel, relax, he's fine. Sleep. I don't want to sedate you, but I will if I have to. Got it?"

Danny nodded but only settled down properly when Steve and Chin had moved the other bed to be a bit close to his and his friend was lying down on his back, stripped to his shorts and covered in another couple of blankets.

That done, they both relaxed and finally, after days, got some shut eye.

Maxfield watched them both for a few minutes and then sighed in relief himself. "We'll keep an eye on them both." he assured the other two members of the team. "Danny's going to need a few days of care, but barring any complications, he doesn't need to do that here."

The Super Twins looked at each other and nodded. "We can make sure the pair of them take some time out." Chin assured the doctor.

"If we have to sit on them to do it." Kono added with a grin.

*****************************

Danny bitched and grumbled all the way from his ex apartment to Steve's house a couple of days later. He had slept for almost eighteen hours in the hospital, Steve in the bed next to him for about a dozen of those and then tucked up in the same bed for the rest. The SEAL hadn't realised he was as tired as he was until he'd woken up half a day after he'd fallen asleep. He had spoken to Doctor Maxfield, was reassured his partner was going to be fine with some R&R and TLC, and then waited for him to leave before unhooking the IV someone had put in his hand when he had slept. He then hopped off his own bed and crawled into Danny's, moving his sleeping partner around enough so he could spoon up behind him. He had almost lost him because of his own vendetta, and now he realised that he really didn't want to let him out of his arms reach ever again. So there he had stayed, wrapped around Danny's smaller form and not at all embarrassed when anyone entered the room to check on them.

While Danny slept on, Steve had arranged for Chin and Kono to move his stuff out of that tiny apartment into Steve's large, previously empty house.

Which was what Danny himself was complaining about now. "SuperSEAL control freak." he grumbled, sitting in the passenger seat of Steve's truck. The final boxes of his things were in the flat bed, he had just signed off the lease on the place and gotten his deposit back, and a couple of hundred dollars more for the pull out couch that Steve had refused to take with them.

Steve, beaming from ear to ear, drove away from the place with a huge sense of relief. "Yes, Danno." he said to him fondly as he drove the truck towards the house. "You'll feel better when we get home." he assured him. "I've got a hammock with your name on it."

Spending an afternoon lazing away in Steve's hammock sounded great to the still tired Danny, but still, it was the principle of the thing. "Have you ever heard of the word 'choice', McGarrett?" he growled, looking out of the side window, rather than his smug partner.

Steve patted his thigh gently. "I've banned it." he replied as he stopped his truck at a junction.

"You _banned_it?" Danny retorted, turning to stare at him. "It's a word, Steve. You can't ban a word."

Steve chuckled and nodded as he gently pressed the accelerator when the lights changed. "Doctor Maxfield and I agreed, you need to be taken care of. For the time being anyway. And I'm not running a democracy, so I've decided that's going to be at our house, and I've banned that word."

Danny gaped at him in shock for a few moments while his brain tried to compute that, and Steve took advantage of the silence. "You'll thank me when you're soaking up the shade, with a bellyful of good food, Danny." he commented, so sure of himself. "You'll see."

Danny huffed and turned back to watch the world go by through his window. "Sir, yes Sir." he snarked darkly, which made his partner laugh out loud.

"Got it right there, Danno." Steve agreed, amused. "And about time you realised it."

*******************************

Kono had been a star, the blond detective thought to himself a little later. When they had arrived at Casa McGarrett they had found she had unpacked virtually all of Danny's boxes into Steve's old room, and tactfully moved all of Grace's things into the wardrobe and cupboards into Mary's old room. She had also rustled up a large lunch for them all, some of which had been provided by her mother. So now, as he was indeed lying in Steve's hammock, he watched her with a smile as she surfed in the cove. "She's great." he said quietly and felt Steve, again spooned up behind him, nod.

"She is." he agreed amiably, and hugged him a little closer. "We'll get her reinstated." he added firmly. "In a few days."

"What's wrong with tomorrow?" Danny asked him with a frown after a few moments.

"Better swells tomorrow, Danno." his partner answered him, a smile in his tone. "Surfing'll be better. So close your eyes and get some more sleep. You'll need your strength for swimming tomorrow."

"Riiight." Danny replied slowly, his dry tone telling his partner exactly what he thought about that one. "You keep believing that." But even as he said it he closed his eyes and settled back into the pillows Steve had stuffed around him. And if, just before he fell asleep again, he heard Steve murmur, "I told you so" in his ear, he decided to ignore it; he could always rant at him later.

End.


End file.
